Death City High
by GuilmonBread
Summary: Maka Albarn is prepared to have a great year of excelling in school and hanging out with her best friends. However, her life takes an unexpected turn when an unusual new student named Crona comes to school. (Soul Eater High School AU)
1. New Student

"I can't believe we got Dr. Stein for homeroom. I'm gonna fail for sure!" Soul groaned as he and Maka began their walk to school.

"Hey, it could be worse!" Maka looked at her best friend sympathetically. "At least we're together. And I'll help you."

"What's the use? Stein is crazy! You've heard the stories."

"Yes, but I'm sure we'll be fine. Besides…plenty of students also really love him."

"Yeah. But not people like me. I'm sure you'll get an A," He grumbled.

Maka sighed. She wanted to give him a speech about how if he applied himself, he could do great things. He really was smart, but he always assumed that he couldn't succeed in school and that was what brought him down. However, she knew that such a speech would only worsen his mood. All she could do was hope he would give her a chance to tutor him this time.

"Come on Soul. We're sophomores this year. It will definitely be better than last year!"

Soul grimaced. "Yeah, at least the seniors will leave us alone."

"We should join a club together this year!"

"Aren't you still on student council?"

"Well…yes but we only meet twice a week. Last year I still had time for that book club."

"I don't know Maka. All the clubs seem so uncool. I'd rather just skateboard at the park or something. I want to be on school grounds as little as possible. Why don't we just hang out as a group after school like usual?"

"I just thought it would be fun." Maka knew he would never actually go for it, but she couldn't help but try. Soul was shyer than he was willing to admit. She sometimes tried to get him to branch out of their small group of friends, but it never worked.

"I think it would be more fun to hang out with people we know we like. So many of the kids at this school are jerks." Soul pulled out his phone as they stopped in front of Death City High School. As if on cue a group of three senior boys brushed past them, rudely knocking the phone out of Soul's hands.

"You're supposed to say excuse me!" Maka yelled after them as they walked away, ignoring her.

"Damnit," Soul mumbled. He picked up his phone and examined it for any cracks. "Lovely people at this school. I really want to hang out with them."

"Let's just get to class. We have five minutes and I want a good seat."

They rushed into class with only two minutes to spare. Most people had already taken their seats and were looking at the teacher nervously. Stein had a reputation for being tough. The room was obviously designed with science in mind. There were twelve countertop desks attached to the floors with six large drawers under each. It looked like the sort of room one would expect from a college, not a high school. None of the other classrooms were this fancy, but Stein seemed to have a way with Principal Death. Soul and Maka sat one desk from the back row to the far right.

"I'm glad we're by the windows but I hate being so far back," Maka said.

"I think this seat is perfect. Plus, this way he won't notice me as much."

The bell rang and Dr. Stein stood up from his swivel chair at the front of the classroom.

"As you all should know this is Intro to Biology and I am Dr. Stein. Not Mr. Stein. Dr. Stein. I also teach classes at Death City college but for some reason I like high schoolers." He shot them a small smile. "I see that you have all paired up. Except one desk is empty, and since I know there should be 24 of you in this class, I suspect that two people have dared to show up late to the first day of school. Let's find out who they are." He pulled out a sheet. "Maka Albarn?"

"Here."

"Bethany Abbott?"

"Here."

"Jessica Claire?"

"Here!" Jessica burst into the room, all out of breath. "Sorry I'm late! My car wouldn't start this morning!"

"Take a seat please. I hope your partner comes soon. We have an uneven number."

"Uneven number?" Death the Kid shot out of his seat. "We can't have that! Then the classroom won't be symmetrical!"

"Sit down!" Liz grabbed the back of his coat and yanked him down. He gave her a reproachful look.

"Yes, well let's continue." He read off the rest of the list. The only student absent was someone named Crona Gorgon, a name that Maka had never heard before. Being on student council, she at least knew the names of most of her class. They were probably new and couldn't find the classroom, she thought sympathetically.

"Alright, well as this class will be heavy on the groupwork I want you to all be familiar with your desk-mates as well as your other classmates. In a few minutes you will be introducing your desk-mate to the class. Ask them the five questions on the board." On the whiteboard was written: "Name? Siblings? Pets? Dream occupation?" and "Favorite school subject?"

"Well Soul I guess we don't even have to ask do we?"

"You don't know my dream occupation."

"Yes, I do. Professional piano player."

"Why would you say that?"

"Dr. Stein!" Jessica, who was sitting at the half-empty desk behind them, waved her hand irritably in the air. "What am I supposed to do?"

"Introduce yourself."

"Seriously? Can't I partner with Jack and Rose?"

A quiet knock sounded at the door.

"Come in!" Dr. Stein called. The door slowly creaked open and there stood a pink-haired youth clutching the straps on their backpack as if their life depended on it. They kept their eyes glued to their boots.

"You must be Crona. Come take the empty seat by Jessica."

"Oh god," Jessica groaned. Maka shot her a glance, her lip turned up a bit in disgust.

"What even is that?" Rose loudly whispered to Jack. Jack suppressed a laugh. Maka's gaze fixated on Crona. They held a very unusual appearance. For one thing, Maka had no idea if they were a boy or a girl. While they were wearing a long black dress-like garment, there was something about them that was very boyish. Maka felt a pang in her chest. They wouldn't last a minute in high school. It didn't help that they just stood there trembling.

"Sorry," They squeaked out as they took a few slow steps into the classroom.

"It's ok. Please take a seat. We are doing introductions."

Crona nodded and began to shuffle down the aisle. A couple students snorted. Maka shot Soul a look. He pressed his lips together, grimly. She knew they were both thinking the same thing. This wasn't going to be good.

"Ok, siblings?" Jessica asked tersely.

"Huh?" Crona's eyes widened.

"The questions on the board. We have to do them."

"Questions?"

"Yes, are you slow or something?"

"I don't know how to deal with questions."

"You got to be fucking kidding me."

"Hey!" Maka swung around. Crona sat there, completely scrunched in on themselves, gaze downcast. "There's no need to be mean."

"Easy for you to say. You don't have to partner with this idiot for every damn science project for the rest of the year."

"Sorry," Crona said, trembling a little.

"Don't apologize. You're new right?"

They nodded.

"Well it's always scary to be in a new place. I know you'll be ok once you get used to it." They chanced a look at her, and she beamed at them. Blushing, they quickly looked back at their hands, nervously peeling the skin around their fingers.

"Ugh. Ok, I'm Jessica Claire and I have one younger sister and two older brothers. I have a dog named Pancake and I like history and want to be a cultural anthropologist. Was that so hard? Come on. How many siblings?"

"Pass," Crona whispered. They lay their head on the desk, hiding behind the protection of their arms.

"Is something wrong over there?" Stein asked. "You have three more minutes."

"Crona won't answer anything," Jessica complained.

"Crona?" Stein sighed. He clearly did not feel like dealing with difficult students today. "Why won't you answer any questions?"

"Pass," Crona said again.

"Can't we just let them be for now?" Maka tensed as everyone giggled.

"For now. Jessica just introduce yourself this time. Please." Rose shot Jessica a look and made the cuckoo sign. "That's enough everyone." Stein cut off an explosion of giggles. "We are starting now. Maka please introduce Soul."

After introductions, the rest of the class went by smoothly. Dr. Stein went over the class expectations and then gave a short lecture for the last ten minutes. Maka chanced occasional glances at Crona. They frantically scrawled notes, occasionally looking up at Dr Stein wide-eyed and with obvious stress. When the bell rang and the students leapt up to leave, Maka turned to Crona.

"Hey, do you need help finding your next class?" She asked.

"See ya at lunch Maka. I have to go upstairs," Soul said before leaving.

"Oh, ok. So Crona do you need help? You seem a little lost."

"I… uh…well I don't know where anything is. You really want to help me?" They looked at her, a little astonished.

"Of course. Can I see your schedule?" Crona pulled out a sheet of paper from their backpack and handed it to Maka.

"Oh, hey we have third period together! And you're going to Room 105. That's fortunately just down the hall. Just follow me." Maka was trying not to rush them too much, but she was getting antsy. She knew she'd be late to her next class and she hated being late. But she also couldn't within her conscience just leave knowing Crona was so lost. She didn't want their next class to go as terribly as this one had. Crona walked two paces behind her as she walked down the hallway, attempting to explain to them how to find their classes. She purposefully ignored how the students passing them seemed to ogle Crona as if they were alien.

"Well here we are," She said, stopping in front of a bustling classroom. "I really have to run. See you later."

"Thank you," Crona said quietly. Maka nodded before sprinting to her next class, thanking her lucky stars that she still had thirty seconds or so.


	2. So Many Questions

Maka arrived in Mr. Talbot's world history class approximately three seconds after the bell rang.

"I'm so sorry!" She gasped, gripping the door frame as a dizzy spell hit her.

"Don't worry Maka. The teacher isn't here yet. I saved you a seat." Maka looked up to see Tsubaki's kind face smiling at her.

"Tsubaki! It's so good to see you." Maka stumbled over and took a seat in the front row by her friend.

"It's not like you to be late. Are you alright?" Tsubaki asked.

"Yes. Something unexpected just came up."

"God, you should have seen this weirdo in my last class." Maka stiffened as she recognized Jessica's voice. "This kid literally was trying to write down every single word that the teacher said. It's like they had no idea how to take notes. Or do anything really. This class was already going to be hell. But now I have to deal with this freakshow as my partner."

"Damn Jessica. You're being a little harsh don't you think?" Maka recognized the voice of Grace Byrd.

"You'd get it if you met them. I wanted to wring their neck. I can't even tell if the thing is a boy or a girl either."

"Oh, are you talking about that kid with the creepy black dress? Or is it some kind of religious garment? I don't know."

"Yeah, that one."

"Are you okay Maka?" Tsubaki's voice broke Maka out of her trance. She tried to ignore the rude conversation she was overhearing as she shot Tsubaki a faint smile.

"I am. But I'm worried someone else may not be." She took out her notebook and pencil case. Why was she thinking about Crona so much? She had just met them. Maybe it was because she knew the kids at this school. They weren't kind to people out of the ordinary, and Crona just screamed anything but ordinary. Tsubaki glanced at the two girls gossiping a couple rows behind them, looking thoughtful.

"Oh," She said quietly, looking as if she wanted to say more. Maka opened her notebook and focused all too intently on writing the date and class name in the upper right-hand corner. Tsubaki wouldn't force her to say what was on her mind, and at that moment she really didn't feel like explaining. She wanted to turn around and give those girls a piece of her mind.

"Sorry I'm late," A tall bald man sauntered into the classroom holding a huge stack of papers. "I was printing your pretests."

The rest of the class passed by uneventfully, and when the bell finally rang to release them, Maka walked out swiftly, giving Tsubaki a quick "See you at lunch!"

Crona was in her next class. She hoped they had understood her instructions and could find their own way to their classes, but she felt a little anxious for them. She considered walking past Room 105 to look for them, but it would be way out of her way to do so and she felt it may seem a little weird. After all, she reminded herself, she didn't even know Crona and she's already feeling the urge to be overbearing. Her next class was in 207, meaning that it was upstairs. She had told Crona what that meant. Surely, they could figure it out, even if the school was a little daunting in its size. Maka sprinted up the stairs, feeling the usual frustration with the groups of friends that walked in front of her as if they didn't realize class was in three minutes.

"Good morning Maka!" Ms. Mjolnir greeted her with a smile as she stepped into class.

"Good morning," Maka responded, looking around. She chose her favorite spot, the middle seat next to the window, and anxiously watched the door. Finally, just before the bell was about to ring, Crona poked their head into the room, looking around nervously. Maka caught their eye and smiled, gesturing for them to come over. Crona looked uncertain, glancing behind themselves to make sure Maka wasn't waving at someone else, before they walked to the chair beside her.

"Hi Crona!" She greeted. "How was your last class?"

"Uh," Crona looked at her uncertainly, and she remembered their reaction to all the questions in first period. "It was okay." Their face scrunched up a bit as they said this, and she wondered if it was a lie.

"Good morning class!" Ms. Mjolnir greeted the students cheerily. "Welcome to English 201. I hope you all had a wonderful summer vacation. I'm Ms. Mjolnir but I would rather you all just called me Ms. Marie. Now I don't know any of you except Maka, so let's all partner up and introduce each other. I'd like to know your full name, so I can take attendance, but then let me know if you would like to be called something different. Then I'd like to know what you did over summer vacation and tell me your favorite book and whether you like poetry. I hope you do like poetry, because we read a lot of it in this class." Marie smiled as a few students groaned. "Come on! Give poetry a chance. Now go! Find a friend." Crona stiffened, curling their shoulders inwards.

"Crona, do you want to partner up with me?" Maka asked. Crona looked at her.

"She said to find a friend."

"You don't want to?"

"No! I mean I do, I just. She said to find a friend. So, you have to find a friend, right?"

"Well why don't we be friends?"

"Really? You'd want to?" Crona looked almost ready to cry. Then they shook themselves. "Why? No one ever wants to. I'm not any fun. I know that."

Maka really didn't know how to respond to this. "Please, let me be your friend. And even if you don't want to be, it doesn't matter for this assignment. Teachers just assume all kids are friends sometimes."

"I want to be! I just…" Crona curled into themselves again. "I'm sorry. I just don't know how to deal with all this right now."

"It's okay. You seem to be doing better than you were earlier at least. Just do your best."

"Really?"

"You're talking more at least. Are you ready to answer the questions this time?"

Crona flinched. "I- I don't know."

"Okay. Well, why don't we try to talk about only some of the questions. Ms. Marie is the understanding type. I doubt she will grill us, but it would be easier to present to the class if we had something to say."

"Ooohh," Crona groaned. "I don't know how to deal with this. Why do all the teachers do this?"

"It's a favorite icebreaker I guess," Maka shrugged. She had never thought about how hard the game might be for some people. For her, it was easy. Usually she had a friend in the class, and if she didn't, it wasn't too hard to find someone. It now occurred to her how hard this would be for someone like Crona. They obviously suffered from severe anxiety and just wanted to hide, but their physical appearance and behavior in the face of required school activities would always make them stand out. It must be horrible to be put on the spot like this. "Did your last class do this too?" She asked.

Crona nodded, wincing at the memory.

"How did it go?"

"I don't want to talk about it right now," Crona said, shutting their eyes.

"Right. Sorry." How could she forget that they didn't like being asked questions? "Crona, I know you don't want to answer any questions, but please. Let's just get them over with." She was trying to be patient, but she hated feeling behind in school, and it was starting to hit her that their time was almost up, and she had nothing to tell Ms. Marie. Maybe she did get where Jessica was coming from, but her lack of compassion still made Maka angry. "My full name is Maka Albarn and I already know that you are Crona Gorgon. Over summer vacation I read lots of books, hung out with my friends, and spent a lot of time at the beach. What did you do?"

"O-over summer?" Crona cringed. "What about the books? What's your favorite book?"

"You know…" Maka paused. "Actually, I'm not sure. I read a lot of books. I really have been trying to read more classics lately, so I guess right now it might be _Oliver Twist. _I like a lot of genres though. I love the _Harry Potter _series, although I suppose nearly everyone does. What about you?"

"Oh, well I'm not allowed to read many books. At home, we have really old book of fairy tales. I read it whenever I have the chance."

"You're not allowed to read? What about required reading for school?"

"Those are usually excused."

"I see." This perplexed Maka. Crona wasn't allowed to read? What kind of parent did that? Usually parents encouraged their children to read. Didn't they? "Crona you answered a question." She smiled at them.

"I did," Crona murmured. "I don't know why I was able to that time."

"Well you did a good job."

"Th-Thank you."

"Is everyone ready?" Ms. Marie asked

"Just a few more minutes!" Exclaimed Maka.

"Alright. Two minutes!"

"Crona, you're doing so well. Do you think you can tell me what you did over the summer?" Maka almost begged, she had noticed that this was a question they had deliberately avoided.

Crona winced, shaking their head.

"Okay," Maka sighed. She wondered why that seemed to be a sensitive topic. However, they had also seemed to shut down when asked even their name just that morning. Perhaps it was nothing other than that problem. Although, what that problem was, puzzled her. Maybe it was just severe anxiety, but it seemed to go deeper than that. "Do you like poetry?"

"I think so."

"Me too!" Maka clasped her hands. "I love to write it too! Have you ever done that?"

"No."

"You should try. It's a great way to get out your thoughts."

"Okay class, let's come back together and introduce each other!" Ms. Marie announced. "Maka, would you like to start?"

Maka started as though she had come out of a trance. "Oh, of course," she said, standing up. She didn't usually get nervous about presenting to the class, but she hadn't expected Ms. Marie to have her go first and wanted time to think about how to present what Crona had told her. "This is Crona Gorgon. They like old fairy tales and they think they like poetry."

"Great! I hope by the end of the class you will love poetry as much as I do," Ms. Marie interjected. "What about your summer?"

"They don't want to talk about that," Maka said quickly.

"Oh." Ms. Marie looked puzzled. "That's okay."

Maka sat down, and looked over at Crona, whose gaze was downcast. She nudged them. "It's your turn." Crona stood up shakily, eyes glued to their desk. Maka heard a snigger. God. Why couldn't everyone just go easy on this kid?

"Th-this is Maka Albarn," Crona stated, still staring at the desk. "She like books and summer. Over the summer she read, went the beach, spent time with friends…" They shot Maka a quick glance, and she smiled encouragingly. "She likes _Harry Potter _and poetry!" They sat down a little too quickly, and scrunched their eyes shut.

"Thank you Crona," said Ms. Marie, checking off their names on her attendance sheet. "I know how much Maka loves poetry." She smiled. "Okay, will anyone volunteer to go next?"

Maka only vaguely paid attention to the other presenters. She watched Crona as they curled up into themselves, breathing a little too loudly. Finally, they opened their eyes and turned to Maka. Their eyes popped open a bit and they sat up straight when they saw her staring. Maka blushed and looked away. Staring was rude. She knew that.

"Sorry," she mouthed. Crona looked confused, but turned their attention the current presenters, Kim and Jacqueline. Crona looked a bit sad as they listened to the girl's confident and quick recounts of each other's summer vacations.

Presenting took up the majority of the class time.

"Oh my," said Ms. Marie. "I shouldn't have let that take so long, but I'm happy to get to know you all a bit better. I guess there's no point in showing you my PowerPoint on Emily Dickinson now. Oh well, maybe it will be better to go into her poetry knowing nothing!" She picked up a huge stack of paper and set it on the table at the front of the room. "You can go to lunch early today, but I pick up an Emily Dickinson packet on your way out." Most of the class shot up and swarmed the table. "Wait!" Ms. Marie yelled over the explosion of voices. "Read the first three pages and be ready to talk about them tomorrow!"

Maka stood up and started packing up her bag. She hated all the pushing and shoving to get out the door. "Crona, do you have any lunch plans?" She asked.

"Well usually I hide in the library, but I don't know where that is."

"Why don't you come sit with my friends and I?"

"Um…I don't know."

"Please, it'll be fun. I'm sure they would like to meet you."

"I don't think so."

"Crona. Really. It's okay. They will be cool. I promise. And if they aren't…" She pulled a giant book out of her bag and grinned. "I'll chop them on the head with this. Really Crona. I want you to come with me, but if you are determined to go to the library then I'll show you where it is. It's a really great place. I often go there before or after school. But I want to get to know you better."

"Okay," Crona's voice wavered. "I'll sit with you. But I don't know how to deal with cafeterias very well."

"It'll be okay." She put on her backpack and waited for Crona to finish packing up.

"Don't forget the packets!" Ms. Marie approached them each with a packet.

"Oh, thank you Ms. Marie!"

"Maka, you can call me Marie. I've known you since you were a little girl. Remember when I'd come over and your mother and I would…" She trailed off as she caught Maka's fierce expression. "Sorry," she murmured sadly.

"It's alright," Maka said, a little more tersely than she intended to. "Come on Crona." She walked out of class with Crona trailing behind, gazing at her worriedly.


	3. Lunch is Better With Friends

Maka walked briskly through the hall. Why did Marie have to bring up her mother right now? Whenever she thought about her mother, an overwhelming wave of grief swept through her. It was the last thing she wanted to think about. This was going to be a good year! Calm down Maka, she thought. You can't be mad at Marie about this. It's not fair.

"Crona?" She turned to check if they were still following. They were right behind her, looking a bit uncertain.

"Yes?" They looked like they were debating whether to ask her what's wrong. Maka did not feel like telling them.

"Lunch doesn't start for seven minutes yet, but I want to go claim our spot." She continued walking. Once they got to the giant cafeteria doors, Crona froze.

"I don't think I can do this."

"Crona." She held out a hand. "It'll be okay. I promise." Crona stared at her hand as if they didn't know what to do with it. They tentatively reached out and touched the top of her outstretched hand. This is odd, Maka thought, but she closed the distance and held their hand in hers lightly. "Walk in with me. Okay?"

Crona stared at their hands, wide eyed. "Okay," They whispered. Maka opened the doors and led them through the giant white-walled cafeteria. Crona tensed as they eyed all the empty circular tables.

"We like to sit by the windows." Maka pointed to a relatively isolated table by a window that looked over the school's garden. "One of the electives offered here is a gardening class. They're in charge of that garden out there. I kind of want to take the class, but I have the opposite of a green thumb." Maka took a seat with her back to the window and Crona took the seat to her right. Their eyes nervously darted all around the cafeteria. There were a few other people trickling in, mainly from Ms. Marie's class. Maka took her lunch bag out of her backpack. Usually she would have left it in her locker, but her backpack wasn't weighed down with enough books yet for that to be necessary. After school she would check out her new locker for the year and personalize it. Crona began fidgeting with their hands in their lap.

"Did something bad happen to you in a cafeteria?" Maka asked.

Crona jolted, looking up at her. "W-well, they get so loud and usually I have nowhere to sit. And sometimes people throw food at me. But it's okay."

"Well you have somewhere to sit now," Maka said firmly. She spotted Soul coming towards them with their friend Black Star.

"Hey Maka," Soul said, taking the other seat beside her. "And Crona. I can't say I'm surprised to see you. How are you doing?"

"We have third hour together," Maka said, taking a peanut butter and jelly sandwich out of her bag. "Crona's going to sit with us from now on, if they want to."

"Hey!" Black Star shouted. "Crona! We had Algebra together." He grabbed Crona's arm a little too roughly. "You probably didn't notice me. I sat in the back, and I'm stealthy, like an assassin. No one ever knows I'm there unless I want them to!"

Crona looked ready to jump out of their skin. "Uh..I r-remember."

"Black Star cut it out. You're too much," Maka snapped. "Can't you see they don't like being grabbed like that?"

"Oh, sorry." Black Star released Crona's arm a little sheepishly. "Also, sorry about what happened in class. That wasn't cool."

"What happened?" Maka eyed him dangerously. "Did you do something?"

"No!" He exclaimed. "I didn't even talk to them."

"Well what happened?"

"Don't t-talk about it!" Crona exclaimed. "Please."

Maka sighed. "Okay." She gave Black Star a sharp look that told him she'd be talking to him later.

Their friends, Death the Kid, Liz, and Patty approached the table. Kid slumped down into the chair and groaned, exaggeratedly.

"What happened?" Maka asked.

Liz rolled her eyes. "He spent all night trying to make everything in the school neat and symmetrical. Of course, that's been ruined now that students actually showed up."

"All my hard work…for nothing! And what is the thanks I get?" He whined.

"He got grilled by the police." Liz smirked. "Honestly, they see a school with all the lights on at 2am and some strange kid running around inside. Can you blame them? You're just lucky Lord Death isn't pissed that your stole his keys."

"And he didn't get any sleep!" Patty chimed in.

"I didn't either. Thanks to you talking in your sleep! Giraffes this and giraffes that. I want my own room," Liz moaned. "I guess I can't complain after sleeping on the streets. It's funny how you become used to luxury." Her eyes finally fell on Crona. "Oh, who's this?" Patty and Kid looked at Crona in surprise. It was unusual for anyone to sit at their table who was not a part of their tight knit group of friends.

"This is Crona," Maka spoke up, placing her hand on their shoulder. "They're going to sit with us." Crona looked down uncomfortably.

"Oh, it's you," Liz murmured, a little sadly. Then she snapped out of it and smiled. "Nice to meet you Crona!"

"New friend!" Patty exclaimed, grabbing Crona from behind by the shoulders. They let out a little yelp of surprise and stared at Patty, wide eyed.

"It's nice to meet you Crona." Kid straightened up, although the bags under his eyes were still prominent. "You're a new student, right? How are you enjoying my father's school so far?"

"Kid's father is Principal Death, but he also owns the building. It's an unusual situation, but I think Death is a workaholic," Maka explained. "Liz and Patty are his foster sisters."

"Oh!" Crona gazed at Kid, wide-eyed. "U-uh…it's nice. Better than my old school." They looked around at all the smiling faces and looked down at their lap again, blushing. Maka saw their lips curl into a tiny smile. "The people here seem nice." Everyone exchanged worried glances.

"I don't know about that," said Soul.

"That's an odd thing to say after…" Black Star cut himself off. "Sorry. I forgot not to talk about it. But Crona you can sit with the great Black Star next time and no one will bother you!" He shouted, placing a hand self-importantly on his chest.

"See, I told you no one would mind if you sat with us." Maka smiled as Crona met her eye. They looked quite overwhelmed but gave her a small smile back.

"Hello!" Tsubaki set down her lunch tray in between Black Star and Kid.

"Hey Tsubaki!" Black Star exclaimed. "It's been forever!"

"It's only been two days." She smiled warmly, glancing around the table. "But it's good to see you all everyday again." Her eyes rested on Crona. "Hi, it's nice to meet you. I'm Tsubaki. Are you new?"

"H-hi! Yes, I am." They nervously glanced at Maka, who nodded reassuringly.

"What's your name?"

"Crona."

"Well it's nice to meet you Crona. I'm guessing you came with Maka?"

"Y-yeah. Is that okay?"

"Of course." Tsubaki took a bite out of her turkey sandwich. "The food here is pretty good. Do you still need to get in line Crona? I'd hurry. The tastier options disappear quickly."

Maka realized with a start that Crona wasn't eating. She assumed they had brought their own lunch since they wanted to go to the library. "Did you need to get food? I can come with you if you want."

"No, it's okay!" They squirmed in their seat. "I don't have any money."

"You were given your student ID number, right? If not, you can get it at the office. Until we get our new ID cards new students can have the lunch lady type in the number. You can charge two meals into the negatives," Kid informed them.

"I c-can't."

"Why not?" Maka asked.

"It's okay. I-I don't usually eat lunch."

"Aren't you hungry?"

"I'm okay! Really!" Crona scrunched up their shoulders and looked down, shaking a little. As if on cue their stomach made an unhappy growl.

"I'll grab you something." Maka stood up and walked away before Crona could protest.

"You're not going to win against her," Soul laughed. "Once she has her mind set to something, she doesn't quit."

"I don't have any money," Crona moaned worriedly.

"She's probably charging it on her card. Don't worry about it. Her Dad is pretty well off, being the vice principal here, and he is always giving her money." Soul opened his thermos and began to eat his ramen noodle soup.

"B-but I can't eat."

"What do you mean?" Liz asked.

"I can't I can't I can't," Crona almost whined.

A few minutes later, Maka returned with a tray filled to the brim with mashed potatoes, chicken nuggets, and fruit salad. "Sorry, there wasn't many choices left." She set the tray down in front of Crona and took a seat.

"I can't eat."

"Why not? You're hungry. Don't lie to me."

"I can't."

Maka sighed. "Please?"

"She'll find out."

"Who?"

Crona didn't respond. They squeezed their eyes shut, as if trying to be anywhere but here. Maka glanced at her friends, who were all watching with worried eyes.

"Well I guess I can't force feed you," Maka said, her exasperation beginning to show. "But it would be a shame if you let that food go to waste." She began to eat her sandwich.

Crona looked ashamed and worried. They kept looking at their food and then back at Maka. Finally, they tentatively picked up a chicken nugget and took a bite. They slowly chewed and swallowed. Maka said nothing, but watched from the corner of her eye as they finished the single nugget. The lunch period flew by quickly. Everyone chatted like usual. Maka forced herself to act like everything was normal, but she couldn't help but worry about the way Crona hadn't eaten any more after the chicken nugget. They just stared at the tray as if in a trance. She worried that she was being overbearing and obsessive. Maybe she should just give them space. She didn't really know Crona. They had met less than four hours ago and already she had convinced them to do multiple things that were out of their comfort zone. Then she thought of the way they had smiled as they said the people here were nice. Maybe they were uncomfortable, but they must be enjoying themselves, nonetheless. She was doing the right thing. She knew she was. What did they mean by, "She'll find out"? They made it sound like they weren't allowed to eat, but that seemed ridiculous. However, she reasoned, they had said they weren't allowed to read much. She felt a pang in the pit of her stomach.

"Are you going to eat that, or can I?" Black Star asked, pointing to Crona's full tray.

"Black Star!" Tsubaki exclaimed.

"I'm still hungry!" Black Star protested. "And lunch is almost over." Crona shook their head and Black Star didn't waste any time in shoving a handful of nuggets in his mouth. Maka rolled her eyes. He was probably doing Crona a favor though. They would feel less bad if Black Star ate their food.

"Do you know how to find your next class?" Maka asked.

"I don't know." Crona pulled out their schedule. "I'm in 304. The third floor then?"

"Wait, do you have Life Skills next period? Patty and I do too," said Liz.

"Oh good," Maka sighed in relief. "Can you two help them then?"

"Of course!" Patty gave Maka an exaggerated thumbs up. "I hope we make cookies!"

"Can I see your schedule again Crona? I want to see if we have anymore classes together," Maka asked. Crona gave it to her.

"We have 6th period Art together." Maka smiled. "I'll be all sweaty after P. E. but I'm sure we will have fun. It's lucky that we have so many classes together. Isn't it?"

Crona nodded, looking shyly at their lap. They jumped a little as the loud bell rung throughout the cafeteria.

"I'll see you later!" Maka smiled. "Have fun in Life Skills. I loved that class last year."

Liz and Patty gestured for Crona to walk with them. Maka felt relieved as she went to her next class. It was nice to know that Liz and Patty would look out for the kid. She was dying to know what had happened 2nd period, but she would have to text Black Star about it later. For now, she needed to focus on her next class.


End file.
